[Capillary blood sample for type 2 diabetes screening: fingertip versus forearm]. / Muestra de sangre capilar para el cribado de la diabetes mellitus tipo 2: dedo frente a antebrazo.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: In Spain, around 50% of diabetic mellitus cases remain undiagnosed. Capillary blood puncture improves the diabetes screening accessibility. New test strips used in the Blood Glucose Monitoring System allow fingertip and forearm punctures yet they create the dilemma on what is the best anatomic place. PATIENTS AND METHOD: We compared fingertip and forearm capillary blood glucose determinations. RESULTS: In a sample of 107 patients, a 110 mg/dl cut-off point for the fingertip and 125 mg/dl for the forearm were more sensitive. Patient's preferences were as follows: 67% indifferent, 28% forearm and 5% fingertip. CONCLUSIONS: In this study, the best anatomic site for puncture depended on the cut-off point used in diabetes screening.